Martyrdom of Polycarp

Contents

1. 0The church at Smyrna greets the church at Philomelium and all churches everywhere.
2. 1.1The church writes about the martyrs and especially Polycarp, whose death ended the persecution and showed what a gospel martyrdom looks like.
3. 1.2Like Jesus, Polycarp waited to be handed over, setting an example of love that seeks others' salvation, not only one's own.
4. 2.1True martyrdoms happen according to God's will, since God rules over all.
5. 2.2The martyrs endured horrible torture without complaint, because the Lord was present with them.
6. 2.3Looking to eternal life and the good things God has prepared, the martyrs counted their tortures as nothing.
7. 2.4Those sentenced to the beasts were tortured further to make them deny the faith, for the devil was at work against them.
8. 3.1Germanicus encouraged the others by his courage and chose death rather than accept the proconsul's pity.
9. 3.2Stirred by the martyrs' courage, the crowd demanded Polycarp.
10. 4.1Quintus, who had volunteered for martyrdom, gave way; so the church does not approve of handing oneself over.
11. 5.1Polycarp was persuaded to leave the city and spent his time in prayer for all the churches.
12. 5.2In a vision Polycarp saw his pillow on fire and knew he would be burned alive.
13. 6.1Polycarp moved again, but his pursuers tortured a young slave into revealing where he was.
14. 6.2Betrayed by his own household, Polycarp was sought by an official named Herod, in a story that echoes Christ's Passion.
15. 7.1Police came for Polycarp at night; he could have fled but accepted God's will.
16. 7.2Polycarp welcomed his captors with a meal and asked for an hour to pray.
17. 7.3Polycarp prayed aloud for two hours, and many of his captors regretted coming for him.
18. 8.1After praying for all, Polycarp was taken into the city on a donkey on a “great Sabbath.”
19. 8.2Officials urged Polycarp to call Caesar “Lord” and sacrifice to save himself; he refused.
20. 8.3Thrown from the carriage and injured, Polycarp walked calmly into the noisy stadium.
21. 9.1As Polycarp entered the stadium, a voice from heaven told him to be strong.
22. 9.2Told to say “Away with the atheists,” Polycarp said it, but of the pagan crowd.
23. 9.3Polycarp refused to curse Christ, whom he had served for eighty-six years.
24. 10.1Polycarp openly declared himself a Christian and offered to explain the faith.
25. 10.2Polycarp was willing to explain himself to the governing authority, but not to the mob.
26. 11.1Threatened with the beasts, Polycarp said that Christians cannot change from better to worse.
27. 11.2Threatened with fire, Polycarp contrasted it with the eternal fire of the coming judgment.
28. 12.1Polycarp remained joyful and calm, and the herald announced his confession to the crowd.
29. 12.2The crowd called Polycarp the destroyer of their gods and demanded a lion, but the games were over.
30. 12.3The crowd demanded that Polycarp be burned, fulfilling his earlier vision.
31. 13.1The crowd quickly gathered wood for the fire.
32. 13.2Polycarp undressed for the pyre himself; the faithful had always honored him for his holy life.
33. 13.3Polycarp asked not to be nailed, trusting God to keep him steady in the fire.
34. 14.1Bound to the stake like a sacrificial ram, Polycarp began his final prayer to God the Father.
35. 14.2Polycarp thanked God for the honor of sharing Christ's suffering and prayed to be received as a sacrifice.
36. 14.3Polycarp ended his prayer with praise to God through Christ, the eternal High Priest.
37. 15.1The fire was lit, and the writers saw a marvel they were spared to report.
38. 15.2The flames formed an arch around Polycarp without consuming him, and a sweet fragrance filled the air.
39. 16.1An executioner stabbed Polycarp, and so much blood flowed that it put out the fire.
40. 16.2Polycarp was an apostolic and prophetic teacher and the bishop of Smyrna, whose words all came true.
41. 17.1The devil, envious of Polycarp's victory, tried to keep the Christians from recovering his body.
42. 17.2Opponents claimed Christians would worship Polycarp instead of Christ, but Christians worship Christ alone.
43. 17.3Christians worship Christ as Son of God and love the martyrs as his disciples.
44. 18.1The centurion had Polycarp's body burned.
45. 18.2The Christians gathered Polycarp's bones and laid them to rest.
46. 18.3The church planned to gather yearly on the anniversary of Polycarp's martyrdom.
47. 19.1Polycarp, though one of twelve martyrs, is remembered everywhere as a teacher and model martyr.
48. 19.2Polycarp now rejoices with the apostles and praises God and Christ.
49. 20.1The church asks the readers to pass the letter on to other churches.
50. 20.2The letter closes with a doxology and greetings from Evarestus, its writer.
51. 21.1An appended note gives the date of Polycarp's death (23 February) and the officials of the time.
52. 22.1A farewell asking that readers follow in Polycarp's footsteps.
53. 22.2A copyist's note on how the text was passed down from Irenaeus.
54. 22.3A later copyist, Pionius, tells how he recovered the text.